He lies alone - in the cemetery of the Glanrhyd Hospital
Introduction
The photograph on this page of He lies alone - in the cemetery of the Glanrhyd Hospital by Mick Lobb as part of the Geograph project.
The Geograph project started in 2005 with the aim of publishing, organising and preserving representative images for every square kilometre of Great Britain, Ireland and the Isle of Man.
There are currently over 7.5m images from over 14,400 individuals and you can help contribute to the project by visiting https://www.geograph.org.uk
He lies alone - in the cemetery of the Glanrhyd Hospital
Image: © Mick Lobb Taken: 17 Dec 2009
Rifleman C W Murphy lies in this quiet place. A soldier of the Monmouthshire Regiment who died in July 1918. The Glamorgan County Lunatic Asylum at Angelton, Bridgend, opened in November 1864 and has enjoyed a variety of names over the years - Glamorgan County Lunatic Asylum and Glamorgan County Mental Hospital before becoming the Glanrhyd Hospital. Perhaps Rifleman Murphy was one of those who suffered what today we call Post traumatic stress syndrome - in those days, battle fatigue or stigmatised by being accused of cowardice. Whatever reason he lies here may he rest in peace. Note: I have been advised by Martyn Gibson, the author of the web site http://www.3rdbattmons.co.uk/ that Rifleman Murphy enlisted in the Monmouthshire Regiment in 1914 but did not enter active service until 1917 as he was in a reserved occupation as a 'colliery repairer'. He was subsequently found to be suffering the disease from which he died before he was able to serve overseas. An apparent mystery solved with thanks.
Images are licensed for reuse under creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0
Image Location
Latitude
51.527743
Longitude
-3.58333